UPSC NDA, NA II 2026 result declared; register for SSB interview by October 23

In short

The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) declared the NDA and NA Examination II 2026 result on October 9, 2026, on its official website.
Shortlisted candidates must complete registration formalities on joinindianarmy.nic.in within two weeks of the result announcement, by October 23, 2026.
The written examination for admission to the 158th NDA Course and 120th Indian Naval Academy Course was held on September 13, 2026.
A total of 394 provisional vacancies are available, including 370 for male candidates and 24 for female candidates.
The Services Selection Board (SSB) interview is tentatively expected to be conducted during December 2026 to January 2027.

The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) declared the results for the National Defence Academy (NDA) and Naval Academy (NA) Examination II 2026 on October 9, 2026. Candidates who appeared for the examination can access the result, released in PDF format containing roll numbers and names of shortlisted candidates, on the official UPSC website, upsc.gov.in.

This result is for admission to the 158th NDA Course and the 120th Indian Naval Academy Course (INAC), with training scheduled to commence on July 1, 2027. Shortlisted candidates are required to complete registration formalities on the Indian Army recruitment website, joinindianarmy.nic.in, within two weeks of the result announcement, making October 23, 2026, the deadline for this process.

Examination and Selection Process Overview

The written examination for NDA and NA Examination II 2026 was conducted on September 13, 2026. The NDA 2 Answer Key 2026 was subsequently issued on September 16, 2026, and candidates had the opportunity to submit representations against questions through the UPSC QPRep from September 14 to 20, 2026, by 6:00 PM.

The selection process for the National Defence Academy and Indian Naval Academy comprises a written examination followed by a Services Selection Board (SSB) interview and a medical examination. The written examination carries 900 marks, and candidates must score a minimum of 25% in each individual paper (Mathematics and General Ability Test) to be eligible for overall evaluation. The SSB interview also carries 900 marks, assessing personality, leadership potential, decision-making ability, and officer-like qualities.

Vacancy Distribution and Interview Schedule

The NDA 2 2026 examination has a total of 394 provisional vacancies. This includes 370 positions for male candidates and 24 for female candidates across various services. The distribution of these vacancies is detailed in the table below.

Academy	Service	Vacancies Total	Male	Female
National Defence Academy	Army	208	198	10
National Defence Academy	Navy	42	37	05
National Defence Academy	Air Force (i) Flying	92	90	02
National Defence Academy	Air Force (ii) Ground Duties (tech)	18	16	02
National Defence Academy	Air Force (iii) Ground Duties (non tech)	10	08	02
Naval Academy (10+2 Cadet Entry Scheme)		24	21	03
Total		394	370	24

The SSB interview, a two-stage selection process, is tentatively expected to be conducted during December 2026 to January 2027. The UPSC typically publishes the SSB interview schedule two to three weeks after the result declaration. Candidates are advised to regularly check the official UPSC and armed forces recruitment websites for updates on interview schedules and required documents.

Important Dates and Previous Cycles

The NDA 2 2026 notification was released on May 20, with an application deadline of June 11. For context, the NDA 1 2026 exam was held on April 12, 2026, with its result expected on May 1, 2026. In the previous cycle, the NDA 2 2025 written examination was conducted on September 14, 2025, with application forms submitted before June 20, 2025, and the result released on October 10, 2025.

Historical trends indicate that written cutoffs typically range from 315-360 out of 900 marks, while final recommended candidate cutoffs range from 688-715 out of 1800 marks, which includes both the written exam and the SSB interview. The final merit list is prepared after both stages of the selection process are completed.

NDA Cycle	Written Cutoff (Out of 900)	Final Recommended Candidate Cutoff (Out of 1800)
Expected Benchmark	320 – 350 Marks	700 – 725 Marks
Historical Trend (Average)	315 – 360 Marks	688 – 715 Marks

Nishit Kumar is a senior EdTech industry leader with over a decade of experience in building and scaling education platforms, shaping their product, content, and growth strategy. At FindMyCollege, Nishit oversees content and editorial strategy, guiding topic selection and content frameworks to ensure accuracy, relevance, and student-first value across the website.

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